The invention relates to a handle arrangement for a movable body part, such as a door of a vehicle.
DE 38 35 265 A1 discloses such a handle arrangement. In this handle arrangement, there is a handle recess in the movable body part, and this handle recess is concealed or made accessible by a pivoted part. The pivoted part in DE 38 35 265 A1 is intended to protect an actuating element, arranged in the handle recess, for a lock from contaminants during travel; on the other hand, however, it is intended to clear the handle recess when the vehicle is stopped so that the movable body part can be moved, in particular opened, by an operator of the vehicle by reaching into this handle recess. For this purpose, there is an actuating device in the form of an actuating cylinder, the actuating cylinder, when the vehicle is stopped, bringing the pivoted part into such a position in which the handle recess is cleared and, when the vehicle is traveling, pivoting the pivoted part into such a position in which the handle recess is covered. The actuating cylinder is actuated as a function of a speed signal of the vehicle. Further details concerning the actuating element for the lock or concerning the lock itself are not given in DE 38 35 265 A1.
The object of the invention is therefore to develop a handle arrangement described at the beginning with regard to comfort and safety aspects.
According to the invention, provision is made for the actuating element to be an electric switching element which lies in an electric circuit with a power supply unit and an actuator, the actuator being designed for the actuation of a lock element of the locking device. Due to the fact that the electric switching element, which is arranged in the handle recess, is covered by the pivoted part, this electric switching element cannot be manually actuated immediately and also cannot be actuated inadvertently, which is of particular importance in the case of an electric locking device, since the actuation of the electric switching element immediately leads to activation of the actuator, which in turn actuates a lock element of the locking device. If the actuator is designed, for example, for actuating a pawl, which after actuation releases a rotary catch, the movable body part, such as a door of the vehicle for example, is immediately brought into the open position by means of the release of the rotary catch. Here, it is of advantage that the electric switching element is not accessible until after the pivoting of the pivoted part, so that this electric switching element cannot be actuated unintentionally. The comfort aspect is ensured by the use of an actuator, since the electric switching element is actuated only with small forces, if need be only has to be touched, in order to bring the movable body part from its closed position into the open position. The avoidance of contaminants in the electric switching element is of no importance at all or is only of secondary importance at this point, since this electric switching element may be designed to be protected from environmental effects such as contamination. It is essential here that the locking device can only be actuated after actuation of at least two separate operating points (first operating point: pivoted part, second operating point: electric switching element). That is to say that the electric switching element can only be reached when the pivoted part has been brought quite deliberately from its closed position into the open position against the spring force.
In a development of the invention, a sensor is provided on the pivoted part in order to detect a movement of and/or the position of the pivoted part, in which case the actuator can be activated or deactivated depending on the detected movement and/or the position of the pivoted part. In this case, the actuation of one of the two operating points is shifted to the electrical level, so that the actuator is switched on only when the sensor has detected that the pivoted part has been brought out of its closed position into the open position and the electric switching element has been manually operated by the operator of the vehicle. This may be realized, for example, by virtue of the fact that the electric switching element and a further switching element, which is actuated as a function of the output signal of the sensor, lie in series in the electric circuit, and the electric circuit is closed and the actuator activated only upon activation of both switching elements. This may be realized, for example by means of a control unit, to which the actuation of the electric switching element, as input signal, and the output signal of the sensor are fed. Depending on the admissibility (justification) of a desire to perform an opening action, the control unit activates the actuator if there is the justification to do so and prevents it if there is no justification.
In a development of the invention, the electric switching element is a pushbutton, which is of simple construction, is simple to operate and can also be arranged in an uncomplicated manner in the handle recess and be electrically interconnected.
The pushbutton part accessible to the operator of the vehicle may be provided with a protective cover, which protects this part from contaminants such as dust and moisture.
In a development of the invention, the actuator is provided as an opening aid. The opening aid is explained using the example of a door of the vehicle. The door is in the closed state. If occupants now want to open the door from the interior space of the vehicle, a grip, such as a door interior handle for example, is actuated, this actuation being converted into an electrical signal and an actuator being activated by means of this electrical signal, this actuator actuating at least one lock element, such as, for example, a pawl interacting with a rotary catch, so that the door immediately springs open with actuation of the grip. For this normal case, a mechanical connection from the grip to this lock element via connecting elements is not necessary, so that comfortable opening of the door is possible without expenditure of force during the unlocking. At this point, it is especially important that the grip cannot be actuated inadvertently, since this immediately leads to the opening of the door. Therefore the pivoted part according to the invention must first be moved out of its closed position into its open position in order to gain access to the electric switching element, and only then does the actuation of the latter activate the actuator. Provision is therefore made in a development of the invention for the handle arrangement according to the invention to be arranged on the inside of the body part, that is in the direction of the interior space of the vehicle. The handle arrangement may of course also be arranged on the outside of the body part, although this is not so important, since the exterior grip (door exterior handle) is generally only actuated when the vehicle is stationary.